New Delhi: Assam Police has registered a first information report against popular podcaster Ranveer Allahbadia, comedian Samay Raina and three others in connection with a “joke” that a section of commentators have said is vulgar.
The Mumbai Police had earlier said an inquiry was underway into the issue. While it did not immediately file an FIR, according to a senior officer quoted by The Indian Express, they have called Allahbadia and Raina for an inquiry again.
Allahbadia, who runs a podcast show under the name BeerBiceps on YouTube, was the recipient of ‘Disruptor of the Year’ award at the National Creators Awards in 2024. He had made headlines for a series of video interviews with several ministers and politicians, mainly from the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party.
Allahbadia made the comments subject to the current controversy when he was a guest on a show called India’s Got Latent, which is hosted by Raina. He asked a contestant, “Would you rather watch your parents have sex every day or join them to finish it once and for all?”. Many said that this question was offensive, vulgar and hurt the fabric of the family. Other comments made by Allahbadia and others on the show have also been shared in the form of clips – drawing further criticism. Content creators Ashish Chanchlani, Jaspreet Singh and Apoorva Mukhija (who is a social media influencer who calls herself the ‘The Rebel Kid’) were also part of the episode.
Allahbadia has since apologised for his remarks on X.
The video where these comments were made has since been taken down from YouTube by the creators.
The complaint was filed against all five by an Alok Boruah from Guwahati who felt that the comments caused “serious harm to public decency”. A case was filed with the Guwahati Crime Branch under sections of the IT Act, Indecent Representation of Women (Prohibition) Act, 1986, and sections of the Bharatiya Nyay Sanhita (BNS), including 79 (insulting a woman’s modesty), 94 (use of children for criminal activities), 294 (publishing and sale of obscene material) and 296 (conducting obscene acts in public place).
Assam chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma took to social media to announce the same and said an investigation was underway.
Today @GuwahatiPol has registered an FIR against against certain Youtubers and social Influencers, namely
1. Shri Ashish Chanchlani
2. Shri Jaspreet Singh
3. Shri Apoorva Makhija
4. Shri Ranveer Allahbadia
5. Shri Samay Raina and others
for promoting obscenity and engaging in…Advertisement— Himanta Biswa Sarma (@himantabiswa) February 10, 2025
According to media reports, a Mumbai Police team had arrived at the Habitat building in Mumbai’s Khar area, where the show was shot. An inquiry was conducted for four hours based on a written complaint by two lawyers – Ashish Rai and Pankaj Mishra – to the Mumbai Police and the national and Maharashtra women’s commissions alleging that obscene comments were made against parents, and women and their body parts.
Maharashtra chief minister Devendra Fadnavis said that he had not watched the video where the comments were made but warned about the limitations of freedom of speech.
“I have got information about the vulgar comments but I have not seen it yet. Freedom of speech is there for everyone, but it has limitations. Our freedom of speech ends when we encroach upon someone else’s freedom… In our society, we have some rules about obscenity. If someone violates them, it is absolutely wrong and action should be taken against them,” he said, speaking to the press.
Free speech debate
Article 19(1)(a) of the Indian Constitution grants all citizens “the right to freely express their thoughts, opinions, and ideas. This includes the freedom to express oneself through speech, writing, printing, visual representations, or any other means.”
However, there are certain “reasonable restrictions” imposed on this right for the interests of sovereignty and integrity of India, security of the state, friendly relations with foreign nations, public order, decency or morality, contempt of court, defamation, incitement to an offense, or the sovereignty and integrity of parliament.
The objection to the comments made on India’s Got Latent presumably fall under the “reasonable restriction” of public order, as well as decency and morality.
However, many people have taken to social media saying that while the comments were vulgar and should be criticised, it does not call for a police case, with some calling it a censorship attempt.
People have also questioned how political leaders are let scot-free repeatedly when comedians and influencers are caught over “indecent” remarks.
“It’s ok to name and shame #RanveerAllahabadia and Samay Raina, but why is the Mumbai Police investigating this matter? Why are we so extreme that we are either on this side or that side? The statement deserves all the criticism but at the end what would the police investigate? Our MPs use words like Katua in parliament, hate speeches are given by ministers and leaders everyday, but no action against them so far,” said journalist Sohit Mishra on X.
“This is absolutely ridiculous. Crassness isn’t illegal and it’s definitely not obscene. People who deliver hate speeches get away scot free but bad jokes will land you in jail,” said advocate Chitranshul Sinha.
Notably, Ranveer Alllahabadia and Samay Raina are two of the most popular internet personalities in India. Allahbadia’s YouTube channel BeerBiceps has more than 8.2 million subscribers, while Raina has over 7.4 million subscribers. His show, India’s Got Latent, is among the most watched series on the internet in India with each episode getting anywhere from 20-40 million views.
The others booked also have huge following on social media. Ashish Chanchlani has 17.2 million followers on Instagram; Apoorva Mukhija has 2.7 million followers and Jaspeet Singh has over 709K followers on Instagram.
